A community of nearly 30,000 residents is set to become California’s newest city. 

Mountain House in San Joaquin County will incorporate on July 1, several months after voters showed overwhelming support for cityhood. 
•Video Above: Coverage of Mountain House cityhood vote (from March 2024)

Mountain House is in the southwestern part of the county, about 30 miles southwest of Stockton and 50 miles east of Oakland.

To celebrate cityhood, Mountain House announced officials are holding a commemoration ceremony as part of a Fourth of July celebration. 

Mountain House is San Joaquin County’s eighth city and California’s 483rd city, as well as the state’s newest since 2011. 

It has about 10,000 registered voters and is a growing community with about 28,000 residents. 

On the same March ballot where voters opted for cityhood, they also decided on a proposed mayor and city council and determined how future elections would work. 

A majority of voters decided on an “at-large” process to determine how city council members will be elected.

An “at-large” election means anyone who lives in the city could run for a city council seat, instead of using a system of districts with one member from each. In Mountain House, the candidates with the most votes will become city council members. 

Prior to the cityhood vote, Mountain House was governed by an elected, five-member community services district board. 

EXCLUSIVE: 20th has landed the rights to a feature adaptation of the New York Times bestselling novel California Bear from Duane Swierczynski. Gary Lennon will write the feature alongiside Swierczynski with Ryan Coogler’s Proximity Media producing, sources tell Deadline.

Swierczynski’s latest novel is a thriller that follows four unlikely vigilantes whose decision to take justice into their own hands pits them against the villain behind California’s coldest murder case.

California Bear is 20th’s first project with Proximity. Rashonda Joplin, 20th’s Director of Production, and Catherine Hughes, Creative Executive, will be shepherding the project. 20th’s Head of Literary Affairs, Clare Reeth was instrumental in bringing the book into the studio. Ryan Coogler, Zinzi Coogler, Sev Ohanian produce through their company, Proximity Media. Rebecca Cho will exec produce and oversee the project along with Hannah Levy for Proximity Media.

In March, Lennon extended his development deal with Lionsgate Television and was previously under an overall deal at Starz. Currently, he is the showrunner and executive producer of the Power spinoff series Power Book IV: Force continuing his work from Season 2 and is in production on the third and final installment of the Chicago-based crime drama. He was also executive producer of the mothership series for Starz which earned him two NAACP Image Awards. Additionally, he’s partnered with Lionsgate Television on P-Valley and Hightown for Starz and the hit Netflix series Orange Is the New Black. Lennon is represented by CAA, M88 and attorney Erik Hyman.

Swierczynski is the New York Times bestselling and two-time Edgar-nominated author of 15 novels including Expiration Date, Canary and the forthcoming California Bear, as well as the graphic novels Breakneck and Redhead. Along with James Patterson, he co-created the Audible Original The Guilty and co-wrote the private eye thriller Lion & Lamb. He’s also written more than 250 comic books including Deadpool, The Immortal Iron Fist, Punisher, Birds of Prey and Star Wars: Rogue One. His first short story collection, Lush & Other Tales of Boozy Mayhem, was recently published by Cimarron Street Books. Swierczynski is represented by Story Driven and McKuin, Frankel Whitehead.

Proximity Media’s film projects include two-time Academy Award-winning Judas and the Black Messiah, Space Jam: A New Legacy and Creed III which grossed over $275M theatrically. Upcoming, Proximity is currently in production on Ryan Coogler’s untitled event film for Warner Bros. starring Michael B. Jordan. It’s set for a March 2025 IMAX release. Additionally, the company is in post-production on Marvel’s Ironheart miniseries. Proximity also produced the documentary Homeroom with Hulu, co-produced Stephen Curry: Underrated with Apple Original Films, A24 and Unanimous Media, as well as Anthem, with Onyx Collective as part of the company’s overall deal with Disney Television. They are repped by WME and Jonathan Gardner, Esq.

Gardeners in Southern California made a chilling discovery outside a family’s home just a week after the same strange item was found in another yard. 

In a chilling discovery, gardeners stumbled upon a hidden camera while working at a home on the 200 block of Via El Encantador on April 16, according to the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office. 

The recording device was found pointing at the single family home, hidden under a landscaped area of the front yard. 

It was covered in camouflage tape and hidden amongst plants, the police said. 

Cops have urgently warned homeowners to survey their properties as hidden cameras linked to ‘burglary tourism’ are on the rise in crime-ravaged Southern California.

Gardeners working at a home on the 200 block of Via El Encantador on April 16, according to the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office

Along with the camera, other items were found with the device in April. Police said they are still investigating the finding. 

‘The device consists of a battery pack, power cord and a camera with a memory card. These items were processed for evidence and booked for retention,’ Raquel Zick, public information officer for the Sheriff’s Office told KTLA5. 

‘The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office would like the public to be aware of this incident and encourage anyone who finds a similar device to immediately report it to law enforcement,’ Zick said.

An image of the devices showed a black hand-held camera with a memory card, a large back battery pack and a power cord wrapped in camouflage tape.  

A similar hidden camera was found in a bush outside a home on S. Primrose Avenue last Monday night, following an attempted burglary on the residence. 

A social media post showed a photo of the device – a camera concealed in a green shell surrounded by leaves.

A similar hidden camera was found in a bush outside a home on S. Primrose Avenue last Monday night, following an attempted burglary on the residence

A social media showed a photo of the device – a camera concealed in a green shell surrounded by leaves (pictured)

‘Last night, your APD responded to a call on the 1900 block of S. Primrose Ave. regarding a report of an attempted burglary,’ the Alhambra Police Department wrote in a statement last Wednesday that announced no arrests.  

‘The victim’s neighbor found a hidden camera in the bushes pointing toward their home. 

‘Their alarm company also notified them of an attempt to open the kitchen window earlier that day.

‘Unfortunately, camouflage cameras are a tactic being used in residential burglaries,’ it continued, sharing an evidence photo of the camera in question.    

‘These cameras are strategically placed in discrete areas, such as bushes, to allow thieves to gather information about homeowners’ daily routines to burglarize their homes.’

An alarm company notified the homeowners of an attempt to open the kitchen window earlier that day, a month after four Colombian nationals were cuffed for allegedly running a ‘burglary tourism’ ring that involved the use of camouflage cameras. 

That happened in Glendale a few miles away, as burglary tourism seen since the pandemic continues to dominate headlines not only in The Golden State, but elsewhere as well.

In the Glendale case, the four arrested – 28-year-old Bryan Martinez Vargas, Jose Antonio Velasquez, 28, Edison Arley Pinzon Fandino, 27, and Luis Carlos Moreno, 29 – were all Colombian, and all proponents of the new trend, cops claim. 

In this particular incident, the cameras were found before the thieves could gain entry.

The camera was found in the bushes and camouflaged with greenery to prevent it from being seen, but who put it there and how long it was stationed remains unknown.

The camera in that case was also found by an eagle-eyed neighbor, the homeowner told KTLA May 28.

‘Burglary tourism’ involves foreign nationals entering the United States using tourist visas to commit burglaries, Glendale PD Sgt. Vahe Abramyan reiterated last month.

‘They’ll commit these crimes, they’ll use different identities, things like that and eventually they’ll go back to their home country.

‘Some of these residential burglars have been recorded going through second-story homes,’ added Officer Jessica Cuchilla with the police force in Huntington Beach. 

“In these instances, the reason why they’re going in through there is because people don’t install alarm systems on their second story.

The thieves typically then ship the items they steal back to their home countries or sell the items before leaving, both cops said.

Cops have urged residents to survey their yards as the act of ‘burglary tourism’ has taken over crime-ravage Southern California. (pictured: Another hidden camera found uncovered outside a home in LA )

If you spot a suspicious vehicle, write down the license plate, officers also advised – adding to also keep your front porch and exteriors well-lit.

Trees and bushes should also be well-trimmed, they said – as to not become an easy hiding spot for thieves.

The installation of security cameras is also important, the cop said – as is monitoring them frequently.

And lastly, a broken window or open door should be a telltale sign to call police immediately, and to not even come close to entering.

‘Remember, it’s important to regularly inspect the exterior of your home for any unfamiliar objects or changes in the landscaping that could potentially hide a surveillance camera,’ cops said in their statement. 

‘Keep an eye out for suspicious people knocking on doors. They may be checking whether someone is home.’